VAFA 2018: Kew premiership coach Ian Aitken returns to the Bears
A FAMILIAR face will return to Victoria Park in 2019 in a VAFA coaching coup for Division 1 club Kew.
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THREE-time Kew premiership coach Ian Aitken will return to Victoria Park in 2019.
The Bears confirmed the three-year deal late last month, with Aitken replacing Michael Shmerling.
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Kew president Michael Cochrane said Aitken’s appointment was in line with the Victorian Amateur Football Association club’s strategic plan.
“The club wasn’t actively looking for a new men’s coach in 2019, so when Ian approached the club to potentially come back on a long-term basis, we went through a robust due diligence process to ensure that it was the right fit and timing for the club,” Cochrane said.
“The club considered that the appointment was in line with our strategic plans and also a really exciting opportunity to build a sustainable under-19s side and pathway from junior to senior football, under someone with a proven track record.
“We think we have built a really strong culture in recent years and we couldn’t be more excited to have appointed Ian to help continue our improvement both on and off the field.”
Aitken played 61 games at Carlton, including the 1987 premiership, and a further five matches at St Kilda.
The 51-year-old first coached Kew in 2011 and guided the Bears through their most successful era in the club’s history.
He coached Kew to premierships in 2013, 2014 and 2015, lifting it to Premier C, and was also voted the 2013 VAFA Coach of the Year.
Aitken coached Northern Blues’ VFL development league team and spent 2018 as an assistant at Northern Football League club West Preston-Lakeside.
Kew was relegated from Premier C in 2017 after a three-win season and finished with a 6-12 record this year in Division 1.
Aitken will also coach Kew’s under-19s side with a view of taking the club back to Premier C.
“Ian’s coaching experience and highly successful record speaks for itself,” Cochrane.
“As a local Kew person, Ian maintained some great connections with our club even though he was coaching elsewhere at VFL and then West Preston Lakeside in recent years.
“While Ian is certainly familiar to a number of our players and supporters from when he was last here, he is just as excited about returning to work with some of our new and developing players and coaches.
“He has recently been coaching youth girls’ football as part of the Jim Stynes foundation and we think he will also have some valuable ideas for developing our women’s football program as well.”
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